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Bruce Wheeler, a 30-year GM employee, signs a poster at the Spotsylvania plant |
By KELLY HANNON
The fight to keep General Motors afloat financially reached the Fredericksburg area yesterday.
Anyone with a connection to the automaker was invited to a lunchtime rally inside the GM Powertrain plant in Spotsylvania County.
GM plants across the country held coordinated rallies to pressure Congress to give the domestic auto industry $25 billion in low-interest loans. Detroit's Big Three manufacturers are predicting they cannot survive without help.
"The cost of allowing this industry to fail would be catastrophic," said Royden Grove, plant manager of GM Powertrain in Spotsylvania, addressing a crowd of more than 100 at the rally.
Local GM car dealers attended, as did Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania.
GM employs 76 hourly workers at the plant on Tidewater Trail. They assemble four-speed torque-converter clutches for automatic-transmission vehicles, and six-speed rear-wheel-drive clutches.
Another 18 workers at the plant are salaried.
Grove estimated one in 10 American jobs relies on the domestic auto industry. That includes people directly employed by GM, Ford and Chrysler, as well as the employees of car dealerships and suppliers, Grove said.
If the domestic auto industry fails, "3 million jobs would be lost in the first year. U.S. personal income would be reduced by $150.7 billion dollars, and the government tax loss would equal $156 billion dollars over a three-year period," Grove said. "This level of economic devastation far exceeds the $25 billion of government support our industry needs to bridge this current period."
A big roadblock to getting the money is Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and the Bush administration. Yesterday Paulson told Congress he was opposed to using any of the $700 billion bailout package intended for the financial industry to help domestic automakers.
Congress has approved some assistance for GM, Ford and Chrysler this year. In September, it approved $25 billion in low-interest loans to help the companies develop fuel-efficient vehicles.
So GM is taking its case to the public. The company sent an e-mail blast to car owners yesterday. GM's stable of car brands includes: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Hummer, Pontiac, Saab and Saturn.
"You made the right choice when you put your confidence in General Motors, and we appreciate your past support," wrote Troy Clarke, president of GM North America in the e-mail. "I want to assure you that we are making our best vehicles ever, and we have exciting plans for the future. But we need your help now. Simply put, we need you to join us to let Congress know that a bridge loan to help U.S. automakers also helps strengthen the U.S. economy and preserve millions of American jobs."
Caught in the middle of the congressional debate are Fredericksburg-area residents who have been working at GM Powertrain for more than 20 years. Some have worked there since the plant opened in 1979.
"This is my life," said John Sims, a Spotsylvania resident and 29-year GM employee. "I've always helped the government, and I think the government should help us. I've been paying taxes all of my life."
Keeping the auto industry going will help other businesses, he said. "They help us, they're going to help a whole lot of people--mom-and-pops, the day-care centers," Sims said.
Henry Rhodes started out at GM's Baltimore plant then moved to Spotsylvania.
He has been a GM employee for 37 years. During that time, Rhodes said he has seen enormous advances in the quality of GM cars.
"If we get the government to help us turn the corner, I think we'll be all right because I think we have good stuff in the pipeline," Rhodes said.
Susie Holman of King George County has worked at GM Powertrain for 24 years.
Since the federal government helped the mortgage industry, the auto industry deserves a chance, too, Holman said. She said Americans do not want to see the industry turned over to foreign countries.
"I think the U.S. automobile industry is such a fundamental part of the U.S., and we should keep the business in the U.S.," Holman said.
The mood at the rally was as upbeat as it could be in such a situation, but Holman described the uncertain fate of GM and the plant as "very stressful and very scary."
A few vending machines were removed recently from a break area at the plant. This was not interpreted as a positive sign by workers.
Evelyn Wortham, vice president of United Auto Workers Local 2123 in the Fredericksburg area, said the plant's work force has shrunk far below a high of 300 workers, and employees are bringing snacks from home now.
"They said [the vending machines] weren't making any money," Wortham said.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Kelly Hannon: 540/374-5436
Email: khannon@freelancestar.com
